Hurry Baby
by theoddestcastle
Summary: Castle is away on another book signing tour and Beckett is taking his absence hard. But it's not as hard for her as it is a certain little one. It takes just one phone call for the walls to come crashing down. Futuristic story.


**Hurry Baby**

AN: So I was listening to new Rascal Flatts album and just fell in love with this song. It reminded me of Castle and I just had to get this out of my head and onto the. This was written in maybe about ten or fifteen minutes so it may or may not be good. I don't know, you be the judge. If you haven't listened to the song, go listen to it right now! Future fic to tide me over from all that's been happening on the show.

Disclaimer: I don't own Castle, this amazing Rascal Flatts song, or any of its affiliates. I just "played in the sandbox" as they all say.

* * *

I don't wanna wait, it's been too long

_I don't wanna lay here all alone_

_I don't wanna need this phone_

_To hear you breathe_

Kate Beckett relaxed into the goose feather down comforter, as she lay in her bed exhausted yet content. It had been a long day spent under the sun on the sandy beaches in the Hamptons. As Kate sank further down into the blankets and sheets, her cell phone rang. She checked to make sure her bed partner was sound asleep before answering her phone with a quiet hello.

"Hello?"

"Hey baby," the voice on the other end echoed. He sounded tired too, but happy to hear her voice again.

She smiles widely hearing him breathe into the phone. "Rick."

"I just got done with my signing. I'm sitting up in my hotel room waiting for room service and thinking about you. I miss you so much Kate."

"I miss you too. I can't sleep without you here. The bed is too big."

"The bed is the same size as the bed back home in the city."

"Rick," Kate grumbled. "You know what I mean."

Rick chuckled softly. "I know. It wont be much longer now I think. Just a few more days."

"A few more days is too long Rick," Kate sighed. "I hate waiting. I hate it when you're gone for so long. I miss being able to see you and talk to you."

"But what about when we Skype or talk on the phone?"

Kate frowned into the phone, her voice going soft. "It's not the same as having you here."

"I know. I hate being able to see you and the baby bird. I miss being with you guys and holding the two of you. I miss your hugs and kisses. After all, they are the best in the whole wide world."

Kate giggled. "Baby bird misses you just as much as I do."

When he heard Kate giggle, Rick let out a mega watt smile. Hearing her giggle like that, it was so rare. And his heart ached for her. "You're so cute when you giggle."

Kate gasped. "I do not giggle."

Rick laughed as he saw his wife blushing furiously in his mind. "You do. Katherine Beckett giggles like a little girl. It's one of the things that I love so much about you. And speaking of the baby bird; where is the young Jedi Initiate on this fine evening?"

Kate peeked over to the tiny body sound asleep in bed next to her. He was tangled in his Green Lantern bed sheets, breathing slowly and evenly, and mouth slightly agape as his silky hair billowed in the breeze from the window she had cracked open.

She smiled at her darling baby boy and reached out a finger to run lightly over his cheeks. Even after three years, Kate Beckett was still in awe of the life she and Rick had created. James Beckett Castle aka "Jace" was the best of both his parents.

Jace shared Rick's bright blue eyes that Kate and the rest of the family was an absolute sucker for. Especially when he had the "puppy" look on his face that Alexis claimed her little brother used for "evil" since he usually got his way upon its use. Jace also shared his father's sensitivity, his charm, wit, quirky one-liners, and love of the dramatics.

And for a boy only three years of age, he was smart and quite a little philosopher. He just loved asking questions and trying to figure out how everything worked. It was a reminiscent of his older sister and Alexis would often call Jace her little prodigy.

And what had Jace inherited of his mother? He was headstrong and stubborn as they came. He was fiercely independent and sometimes he didn't like to ask for help until he had been defeated. Jace shared Kate's auburn hair, quick thinking, instinct, compassion, her demeanor, and her unconditional love. Not to mention a fascination with two wheels and a motor. Yes he was definitely a little heartbreaker.

"Katie? You still there," Rick asked a bit worried.

"Huh? Oh yeah. I'm still here. Sorry, I was just watching Jace sleeping. He's in the bed with me."

"I thought you didn't want him sleep in the bed with you otherwise he wont be able to sleep in his own bed?"

Kate sighed. "I know. I just…I miss you so much and Jace, he's just so much like you. I wanted your little mini-me with me at night so I wont be alone."

"Aw Katie. I'll be there soon. I promise. Soon."

* * *

_Every second feels just like a year_

_Every moment you're not here_

_Is like a lifetime of lonely_

_Please…_

_Hurry baby_

_I need you coming through that door_

_Hurry baby_

_I can't be without you anymore_

_Come and save me_

_I'm losing it_

_I swear that this_

_Not kissin' you, missin' you is got me goin' crazy_

_Hurry baby_

Kate Beckett lay her large bed staring at her ceiling as she listened to her husband going about his adventure in the great city of Chicago earlier in the day. The sound of the clock on the nightstand next to her bed ticking slowly as it counted down the final minutes of the day and the hours until Rick came back to them. She missed kissing him and having his arms around him. She wished that the coming days would just hurry up. Every moment away from Rick felt like an eternity of loneliness.

Rick had left on his book signing tour six weeks ago. Kate and Jace had been in the Hamptons for a week and a half for summer vacation. Rick was supposed to have joined them two days ago, but with the booming sales of his latest novel and the demand for his appearance growing higher, Paula decided to add on more dates. Kate had been upset when Rick had told her that.

"Katherine Beckett? What are you thinking so hard about over there? I can hear you from all the way in Chicago."

"I'm just thinking about you," Kate sighed as she stared at the bedroom door hoping, wishing, and praying that by some sheer dumb luck, her husband was going to come waltzing through that door.

"Don't worry about me. Like I said, I'll be there before you know it," Rick promised.

"Okay," Kate replied in defeat. "Tell me about how the book signing went."

Rick complied and regaled his wife with the stories of all the people he had met. He talked about some blonde bimbo who tried to get him to sign her chest. When Rick refused she went psycho so security removed her from the premises. That had Kate laughing so hard that her sides were hurting.

Kate was amused when Rick told her about a little old lady named "Grandma Bea" who was absolutely star struck at the right of Rick. "Grandma Bea" had been so nervous and flustered upon meeting one of her favorite authors that she thought the oxygen in her tank was going to run low. And when Rick stood up to give her a hug, her poor heart nearly gave out.

"I thought I had to give the poor woman mouth to mouth!"

Kate laughed. "I bet she would've loved that."

"Would it make you jealous if I did," Rick asked deviously.

"Jealous of an old woman? I don't think so," Kate playfully scoffed. "Besides, you are way past the 'cub' age for that woman's 'cougar.'"

* * *

_Every single car that passes by_

_My heart beats faster every time_

_I pray it's your headlights coming home_

_If I could just speed up that clock_

_I'd get you here then make it stop_

_I'd wrap you in my arms_

_And love you real slow_

Just as Rick was going to tell Kate about about what he was planning to do the next day, she felt Jace moving beside her. "Hang on, the baby bird is waking up."

Rick smiled at the image of his little boy that loved and missed so much. "Okay."

"Momma," a tiny voice asked.

Kate looked down at her son; he looked so small in the bed. "Hey baby bird. Why are awake? You're supposed to be asleep."

Jace yawned as he knuckled his eyes. "You is being so loud. Who you talking to?"

"I'm talking to daddy baby. Do you want to say hi?"

Jace's bright blue eyes grew. "Can I?" he asked yanking his blanket off and scrambling into his mom's lap.

Kate laughed as he cradle the phone between her ear and shoulder as she settled Jace into her lap. Once he was settled into a comfortable position and had his blanket close by, Kate gave Jace the phone. Kate rested her chin atop of her son's head as she listened to father and son.

"Daddy," Jace breathed into the phone softly.

"Hey there baby bird. Are you being a good Jedi for your momma?"

Jace giggled. "Yes sir. I listen momma real good an I does what she tells me."

"That's a good boy. Are you holding down the fort for me and taking care of momma while I'm away like I asked?"

Jace puffed out his chest proudly. "Always daddy! I pro-teck her from all the munsters an all a bad guys in the galaxy. I use the light saber to hit 'em in the shinz."

Rick laughed. "Really now? I'm very proud of you."

"Yeah," Jace replied trailing off, as he grew quiet.

"What's wrong baby bird," Rick asked sensing his boy's sudden change in demeanor.

Rick's heart broke at the sound of sniffling on the other end. "Daddy when is you a coming back for us," Jace asked miserably as he felt his mom wrap around him tighter.

"Lessy get a come tomorrow when the sun comes to play again. Do you not love us anymore? Is that why you always go away? Did me and mommy made you mad? If you come back, I promise to be a good boy and listen all a time."

Rick just about died when he heard his son's confession. It wasn't the first time he had left on his book tours since Jace was born, but it was the longest. It was also the first time Rick was hearing how Jace felt about it.

"Rick, can I call you back," Kate asked her voice returning over the phone.

"No! Let me talk to him Kate. I need to set this right with him."

"I know you do, but he's exhausted right now. He was out playing all day today and didn't have a nap. I promise you can talk to him in the morning."

Rick was about to protest when he heard a click and the line went dead. "SON OF A-" Rick shouted flinging his phone onto his bed.

He sat on the edge and hung his head in his hands. He breathed slowly, trying to get his heart rate under control. When it did, he opened his laptop and looked up planes tickets for the next flight back to New York. As soon as he booked the next flight out, he threw all of his things into a bag. His phone rang just as he got into a cab.

"How's my little man," Rick asked.

"Jace is a little cranky. He didn't have a nap today so he just about cried himself to sleep," Kate sighed.

"I can't believe it. He thinks I hate you guys. He thinks that I don't love him anymore because I'm always gone. This isn't right. He shouldn't be thinking that. Oh dear God, I'm such a terrible father," Rick sobbed into the phone ignoring the curious look he was getting from the cabbie.

"Don't you dare say that Richard Castle. You are an amazing father and husband. Jace is only three years old Rick. He doesn't really understand what your job entails."

"But he understands your job."

"That's different Rick. Every time you leave for your book tours, he can always count on you coming back. But when I leave, he knows that mommy might not come home. This is the first time you've been away for so long. He's confused."

"You know I can't just up and leave Kate," Rick lied, hoping to surprise his family and fix the emotional deterioration.

"He waits for you, you know."

"What? I don't…"

Kate sighed. All sorts of emotions and bottled up feeling suddenly overcame her and she just broke down. "Jace waits for you to come home. Ever since we arrived in the Hamptons for what was supposed to be our family vacation he's been waiting for you. He wakes up every morning, makes a bowl of Lucky Charms, a piece of toast with Nutella, and a glass of orange juice and sits by the front window. He just sits there eating his breakfast and waits for you. He'll get so excited when he sees a car coming down the street thinking that it's you.

When he realizes that it's not you, he gets so sad and he just cries and cries. It just about breaks my heart every single time. He keeps asking me when you'll be home and I just don't know what to say to him. But, what can I say to him when you don't even know yourself when you'll be back. And when he nearly cries himself to sleep from exhaustion. I cry myself to sleep."

"So tell me Rick," Kate asked sadly crudely wiping away the tears from her eyes. "What's more important…your fans? Or your family."

"Kate," Rick breathed. The problem was worse than he had imagined.

"Jut…come back home already Rick. We just need you to come home. I've got to go now. I'm tired and exhausted. I need to get some rest, Jace and I are going to pick up Alexis from the airport and her flight comes in early.

"Kate…"

"Goodnight Rick. I love you."

"I love you too," Rick whispered as the line went dead.

* * *

_Hurry baby_

_I need you coming through that door_

_Hurry baby_

_I can't be without you anymore_

_Come and save me_

_I'm losing it_

_I swear that this_

_Not kissin' you, missin' you is got me goin' crazy_

_Hurry baby_

Kate woke up the next day and checked her phone. She had expected a missed call or a message from Rick, but when she saw nothing, her heart sank. It was one o'clock in the afternoon. Alexis had called earlier and said her flight was delayed and that she wouldn't be getting in until later on that evening. Kate was saddened by the news and reworked the schedule for the day. She decided that sleeping in would be good for her and Jace after their emotionally charged night. So she held Jace in her arms and fell back asleep.

Now it was the afternoon, she decided now would be a good time to wake Jace up and go out for lunch and some exploring around the town. Kate turned to check on her baby boy, but was met by a large lump covered in her bed sheets. Kate jumped scrambled out of the bed and grabbed her handgun out of the nightstand drawer.

"Don't move," she shouted as she pointed the gun at the lump and pulled the sheets off.

A pair of eyes flew open and the lump scrambled out of bed. "Whoa! Kate put your gun away."

Kate placed a hand on her chest over her rapidly beating heart. "Rick? What are you doing here?"

"Uh surprise," Rick asked chuckling nervously.

Kate set her gun back into the nightstand before throwing herself into her husband. "Oh God Rick. I missed so much. I'm so sorry about last night. We were so exhausted and emotions were running a little high; I just lost it for a bit. I tend to get a little crazy when you're gone. Can you ever forgive me," she cried into his bare chest.

"Oh Kate I missed you and the baby bird too so much. Can you ever forgive me? I was so wrapped up in the book signing and working and trying to please my fans that I forgot about my family. I'm so sorry Kate. I never meant to hurt you guys. I should've told Paula not to add on those extra dates, but I didn't want to disappoint my fans. You, Alexis, and Jace, and the rest of our odd and dysfunctional family are the most important people in the world to me. And so are my fans. They're important too because without them, we wouldn't be able to live the life we're living now."

"I know. And I've lost sight of that. I knew what your job entailed and what came with that starting when I started relationship with you. And I guess over time, I've lost sight of that."

"It's okay Kate. It happens sometimes," Rick soothed his wife as she buried herself into his chest.

Rick tried to look at his wife, but she wouldn't budge. "Kate look at me," Rick pleaded, bringing a finger under Kate's chin and lifting her face to his.

When her wide vulnerable eyes looked up at him, Rick smiled. "There she is. Hey beautiful. I love you," he said as he wiped away her tears.

Kate smiled. "I love you too Rick, so, so much."

Rick leaned down to capture Kate's lips with his in a passionate and heated kiss.

"Come on. Let's go wake the baby bird so I can set things right with him," Rick said as he pulled away.

Kate panicked. "Where is he? He was with me in the bed last night."

Ricked placed his hands on his wife's shoulders and kissed her again to calm her down. "I put him in his own bed when I came home so I can sleep with my beautiful wife."

Kate breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay. Let's go get him," she said tossing a shirt and a pair or cargo shorts at her husband.

* * *

Kate followed her husband to the room just across the hall. She leaned against the doorjamb as Rick trudged through the sea of toys that littered the boy's room. She giggled quietly as he grabbed his bare foot in silent pain after stepping on a tiny Lego Darth Vader. When Rick finally reached his son's bed he sat on the edge and watched him sleep for a bit. Jace was still wrapped in his Green Lantern blanket, his thumb falling out of his mouth, and hair billowing in the breeze from the open window. Rick watched the steady rise and fall of his son's body and he too fell in awe of the life they had created.

He finally placed a large hand on Jace's small back. "Jace," he called softly trying to wake the boy.

Jace shifted and buried his face in the pillow. Rick watched with a smile as he rubbed his face into the pillow before sitting up. Jace looked at Rick with tired and confused eyes.

"Hey there baby bird. Did you have a good sleep," Rick cooed softly.

Jace scrunched his eyebrows and knuckled his eyes trying just to rid them of sleep making Rick chuckle. Jace looked back at Rick and his eyes grew wide. His tiny lips began to tremble and he cried. Kate was about to rush into the room, but stopped when Rick quickly gathered Jace up in his arms and held him tightly.

Jace struggled for a bit pushing his father away. "No! You not real! You is not my daddy. He no here. Daddy is still away. I is still dreaming," he cried.

Rick's heart broke listening to his son's pitiful claims. "Shh. It's okay Jace. I'm here. It's really daddy," he tried to soothe his child.

"Mommy save me! Save me mommy," Jace cried when he saw his mother standing in his doorway.

Rick felt like his heart was crushed into a million tiny pieces and stomped on when he heard Jace calling for his mom to save him. "James, it is daddy," Rick just about cried.

Jace stopped struggling at the sound of his birth name. "You're not dreaming. I really am here with you. I'll prove it to you. Do you want me to prove it to you," Rick asked as he sat the boy down in front of him.

Jace nodded as he was reduced to sniffles and slight convulsing. Rick wiped the tears away and cleaned his hands on his shorts. Rick rubbed his cold hands to warm them and before reaching out with one hand and placing it on Jace's forehead. With a feather light touch, Rick slowly ghosted his hand down Jace's face. When Rick finished, Jace looked up at him with his wide blue eyes.

"Daddy it is you," Jace gasped as he launched himself back into his father's arms.

Rick laughed as he hugged his son. "Mommy look daddy is home! Come see," Jace shouted joyfully.

Kate laughed as she walked over the toys and sat next to her husband and son. "I see him baby boy."

"Daddy is you home to stay?"

Rick smiled. "Yeah Jace, I'm home to stay."

"You promise that you wont ever go away again?"

Rick stopped. Now that was a tricky thing to explain and he hoped his explanation would be good enough for one of his toughest critic. "Well, that's kind of hard son."

"But why," Jace ask looking at his dad with quizzically eyes.

"Baby bird, do you know what daddy does?"

"Ah-huh! You write a stories in books and the people read your stories," Jace replied proudly.

"That's right. The people who buy and read my books are called my fans. And sometimes I have to leave home for a while to meet my fans to tell them thank you."

"But why," Jace asked.

Ricked chuckled. That had always been one of Jace's favorite phrases. "Because it is polite thing to do. And without them, then daddy doesn't make the money that he uses to buy all the food that you eat, the clothes that you wear, and the toys that you play with. If daddy wasn't polite and say thank you then the people would stop buying daddy's books and there will be no toys to play with. Do you understand?

Jace thought long and hard trying to make sense of what his dad had told him. "I think so yes," he smiled.

Rick kissed his son's forehead. "Atta boy. You're so very smart."

Jace giggled. "I know that. Hey, maybe next time, me and mommy can come with you. That way nobody has to be sad and lonely anymore."

Rick smiled at Jace's answer to the problem at hand. It seemed so simple. "That is a very good idea. But it's not that easy baby bird. Your mommy has to put in a formal request to ask her boss and your day care teacher for the time off in order for the two of you to come with me."

"That sound easy 'nuff. Gramma she always say, she tell me 'James Alexander Castle. With your natural charm an des-ah-tating good looks, you can get whatever I want with a smile and a bat of your eyes.' So alls I have to do is smile, make my eyes funny like this, and say please," Jace said demonstrating what his grandmother had told him.

Rick and Kate laughed. "We'll see baby bird. We'll see if it works next time okay,"

Jace smiled as he snuggled in between his parents. "I so happy we all a gedder now. But I not really happy til we have Lessy. Momma said Lessy plane was being bad and that she had to stay in Los Ah-gee-les for a lil while longer."

"Is that so," Rick asked curiously.

"Ah-huh. Momma said we gonna get her later," Jace reasoned.

"Are you sure," a voice coming from the door asked slyly.

Kate and Jace sat up and smiled widely. "Lessy you home too," Jace exclaimed as he jumped off the bed and ran into his big sister's arms.

"That's right. I was so sad when my plane was being bad. I missed you guys so much and I wanted to see you and mom really bad so I found another plane to bring me here. Daddy and I landed at the same time and we came here together."

"Yay! Lessy home we a family again," Jace crowed triumphantly as Alexis walked over to Jace's bed and dropped him on it.

"Hi mom," Alexis smiled as she hugged Kate.

"Oh I missed you so much Alexis. I'm glad you're finally here now," Kate said kissing the young woman on the cheek.

"I so happy. We all family again," Jace reiterated.

"That's right baby bird. We're a family again," Rick smiled a he pulled them all into a hug.


End file.
